PRIME Minister (PM) Manasseh Sogavare has announced an immediate suspension on all incoming passengers’ services until further notice.
The suspension was put in place by the national health emergency operation centre after the country has recorded a two newly positive Covid-19 cases over the weekend.
Speaking in his urgent nationwide address yesterday, PM Sogavare said this suspension applies to all incoming passengers.
“The suspension will allow our front liners to focus on containment of the current situation and bring it under control before we reopen the borders. Cargo fights of course will continue to operate,” he said.
He said given that the country has very limited capacity to contain a community outbreak of Covid-19 we must contain and eliminate it at the isolation centres and in quarantine stations.
“We cannot allow incoming passengers to bring new risks while we try to control the risk we now have in the country,” he said.
On that note, PM Sogavare said a fully vaccinated Solomon Islanders advised not to travel to any country affected by the Omicron variant Covid-19 except for those that travel to remain overseas for more than two months.
“Anyone that travels out of the Solomon Islands to any Omicron variant affected country will not be allowed to enter or re-enter the country for a minimum of two months, and they will only return when our borders reopen,” he said.
He concluded that any Solomon Islanders that have not been vaccinated will not be able to travel overseas because no country will allow a non-vaccinated person to enter their borders.
By FOLLET JOHN
Newsroom, Honiara
